


The Guessing Game

by macaronize



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Full Reveal, Mutual Pining, No angst here, Not Canon Compliant, but im not gonna change it so here you go, half reveal, i wrote this before season 2 came out, so everything doesn't exactly hold up anymore, that's all, the whole class is oblivious, your welcome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-10 16:12:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12915483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/macaronize/pseuds/macaronize
Summary: Chloé seems to think that Ladybug goes to their school, so she gets Alya  to enlist the whole class to help her find out the identities of Ladybug and Chat Noir.  Alya organizes a month-long game to see if they can find out their identities.  Marinette is adamantly against this for obvious reasons, but reluctantly agrees as to not seem suspicious.  All she has to do is sabotage every attempt to find out her identity. Easy.  However, when Chat tells her on patrol that he’s one of the Game participants, even she can’t stop herself from looking for him in another blonde boy she knows.





	1. Let the Games Begin!

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is what I've been working on in the last 4 months! It's also my first completed multichapter fic!
> 
> I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

"Alya Cesaire," Chloé's shrill voice broke the peaceful atmosphere of the almost empty classroom, "What the hell is this?"

Marinette looked at her best friend and rolled her eyes.

Alya shook her head, "What, Chloé?"

Chloé waved her phone in Alya's face, "This article on the Ladyblog!  It's boring.  I don't care what your top ten favorite akuma are."

"And I don't care about your opinion," Alya countered.

Chloé just rolled her eyes, "Look, you have some good stuff on here.  You're just losing focus."  She scrolled through the Ladyblog's archive, while Alya and Marinette stared dumbfounded that Chloé just complimented something that had to do with Alya.

"Here," Chloé shoved the phone back in Alya's face once she found what she was looking for, "this is what you should be looking into."  It was the article from when Chloé found Ladybug's history textbook. Marinette thought she already solved that case.

"That's old news Chloé," Marinette said, "Ladybug has been around since the Ancient Egyptians remember?"

"I'm sorry.  Did I ask you, Marinette?" Chloé growled before bringing her attention back to her phone, "Anyway, I don't buy that Ladybug's 5000 years old or whatever.  She could be in our school!  Why isn't anyone looking for her?"

Marinette watched as Alya's face turned from realization to shock to disgust.

"Holy fuck, I actually agree with something you're saying right now," Alya said.  

Oh no! This is bad.  Alya teaming up with Chloé?  That's a disastrous combination.  They might actually be able to figure it out with their fierce personalities and complete dedication to Ladybug.  Marinette knew she had to stop this, but how?

"Alya, can I speak to you for a moment?" She pulled her outside into the hallway as the rest of the class was filing in, "Did you just hear yourself?  You just agreed with Chloé!"

"I know, girl.  I know," she said still looking slightly disgusted with herself, "but she has a point.  I should've looked farther into that."

"But knowing Ladybug's identity could put you in serious danger!"  Marinette pleaded, "What if Hawk Moth finds out and tortures you into giving him their identities!"

"Girl, that's not gonna happen," Alya said with an annoying amount of confidence.  Sometimes she made Marinette want to pull her hair out from the amount of danger she was willing to put herself in to find a good story.  It was bad enough when she was simply reporting akuma, but now Alya was putting herself in even more danger.  What did Marinette do to deserve this?

"Alya, it could happen, and you know it."

Alya smirked, "Come on Marinette aren't you at least a little bit curious as to who she could be?"

Marinette just stared at her, deadpan.

"Come on," Alya nudged her, "if I add Chat Noir to the search would you be more inclined?   I know how much you love him.  Almost as much as Adrien."  Alya had this ridiculous idea that Marinette had a crush on Chat Noir because of how much she defended him whenever someone called him a "sidekick,"  which just wasn't true at all not even a little bit...

"How many times do I have to tell you? I do not have a crush on Chat Noir!" She squeaked, her face aflame.

Ok, maybe it was a teensy bit true, but she would never admit that out loud.  As far as anyone needed to know, she was completely devoted to Adrien.  She was still super embarrassed that the silly kitty managed to weasel his way into her heart anyway.

"Uh huh," Alya said, unconvinced, "So are you in?"

"No!" She folded her arms across her chest, "They don't want us to know who they are, and I'm not going to go against our heroes' wishes!"  That's right, she really showed her! What are you going to say to that, Alya?

"Huh," Alya thought for a moment.

"Oh no, what are you thinking?"

Then, a light bulb went off, "Fine! If you're not gonna help me, I guess I'm gonna have to ask someone else."  She barged back into the classroom. 

Marinette quickly followed, "No!  Wait! What are you doing?"

"Attention class!" Alya called, "Introducing the first annual Ladyblog hosted event: The Guessing Game!"

Everyone just looked at her confused.

"We're gonna try to find out Ladybug and Chat Noir's identities."

The class looked slightly more interested now.

"Winner gets to meet Ladybug and Chat Noir?"  

Marinette wondered how she was gonna manage that given that Ladybug was really mad at her right now, but the whole class buzzed with excitement. Marinette suddenly regretted her decision to decline.  It would've been much easier to control if it were just she and Alya.  Now the whole class is involved, and it could get out of hand really quickly.  How was she going to stop it now?

“But aren’t Ladybug and Chat Noir’s identities supposed to be secret?” Adrien asked.  Marinette knew there was a reason she liked him.  Chat Noir who?

Chloé put a hand on his shoulder, “Oh, sweet, sweet Adrien.  What’s the fun in that?”

“What’s the fun in putting yourself in danger for no reason?” he polite brushed her hand off of his shoulder.

“Geez, you sound just like Marinette,” Alya said, “like okay, Mom and Dad, we’ll be careful.”

Marinette blushed at being coupled together with Adrien, “Really, all of you are gonna be careful? Kim? Alix?”

Alix gasped dramatically, “How dare you?  Kim and I are always careful,” she broke into laughter, “Okay, she has a point.”

“See?” Marinette said to Alya.

Chloé shook her head, “Whatever.  It’s just a game.  We’ll just keep it between us.”

Marinette didn’t believe for a second that Chloé Bourgeois would be able to stop herself from bragging to everyone that she found out Ladybug’s identity.

“I don’t think you all realize how much danger you’re putting yourselves in by doing this,” Adrien said.

“Don’t worry, blondie,” Alix said, “We’ll be fine!”

“Guys, you really can’t do this!” Marinette was getting desperate.  

Kim groaned, “Come on, Marinette!  What’s your problem?”

“Yeah,” Max chimed in, “Why are you so against this?  It almost seems as though you’re Ladybug.”  

Marinette sputtered, “What? Me--Ladybug? I’m much too clumsy to be a superhero and you know it!”

Ivan observed her carefully. “I don’t know...You have the pigtails and the blue eyes…”

No way was this happening.  Almost a year of being Ladybug and it took them this long to make a connection? 

“I only wear the pigtails because I’m such a huge fan of Ladybug!” she said.

“But I thought you liked Chat Noir better?” Rose said, innocently.

Adrien looked at her with an unreadable expression, “You like Chat Noir better?”

There’s that traitorous blush again, “Yeah, but it’s not like I can imitate him everyday!”

“Come on, guys! This is ridiculous!”  Chloé interrupted, “Marinette could never be Ladybug.  She’s a loser not a superhero.”

Marinette never thought she’d be grateful for Chloé’s insults, but she had to defend her honor regardless.        

“Hey, I could be Ladybug!” Marinette defended.

“Is that you admitting you are Ladybug?” Max said.

“No!” Marinette said, “I’m just saying that I’m no less likely than anyone else to be a masked superhero in my spare time.”

Most of the class seem satisfied enough at this, though Max still looked skeptical.

“Anyway, doesn’t anybody care who Chat Noir could be?” Marinette changed the subject.

Alya waggled her eyebrows. “Well, you surely seem to.  Does this mean you’ll play?”

Marinette considered her options: either she didn’t play and have her classmates be suspicious of her identity or she play along and secretly sabotage her classmates efforts from the inside.  The latter sounded way more fun and had a way smaller chance of her classmates actually finding out she’s Ladybug. 

Then, it’s decided she would play along.

Marinette sighed, “Fine, I’ll play.” “I knew you’d come around!” Alya smiled, “Now, we just need to get Mr. Model Citizen over here to play.” She gestured toward Adrien, who looked like he was going through a personal crisis.  Wow, he really didn’t want to go against their heroes’ wishes.

“Oh, of course Adrikins is gonna play,” Chloé said, “tell ‘em you’ll play, Adrikins.”

The whole class was looking at him expectantly now.  Marinette felt sort of bad for him.  She had this attention on her only minutes ago and it didn’t feel good.

“Fine,” Adrien obliged, though the look on his face looked as if he was going against everything he believed in.

The whole class cheered.

“Alright! Let the Game begin!” Alya announced.


	2. An Interesting Development

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir warns Ladybug about the Guessing Game and Marinette goes through a crisis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

“Shit, shit, shit, shit.This is bad,” Ladybug muttered to herself, pacing the rooftop waiting for Chat to arrive for patrol.

She knew she had to warn Chat about the Guessing Game, but she wasn’t really sure how he would react.Hopefully he would come up with a plan to stop it, because she had nothing.She tried her hardest as Marinette to stop it from happening, and that only made things worse.She sensed that trying to stop it as Ladybug would only add fuel to the fire. God, what was she gonna do?

She heard the familiar sound of boots hitting the rooftop.

“Ladybug, I have to tell you something—“  
“Kitty, something bad is happening—“

“Wait, what do you have to say?” Ladybug asked.

“You can go first,” he said, “Your thing sounds important.”

“No, you go.”

Chat shook his head, “No, you.I believe the saying is ‘Ladybugs first.’”

“But you started talking like a second before I did.”

Chat raised an eyebrow.

“Really, you can go first, Kitty.I insist.”

He hesitated, “Are you sure?”

“Please, I need to think about something else for a few minutes.”

“Okay,” he took a deep breath, “So, um, I think we have like 20 teenagers trying to find out our identities.”

Ladybug took a minute to let that sink in, “What do you mean you think?”

“I mean, I know that like 20 teenagers are actively trying to figure out our identities,” Chat corrected.

What? How is Chat’s news the same as her own?Is there two groups of teenagers that are trying to find their identities or does Chat know someone in her class?So much for getting her mind off it.

“and—uh—one of them is kind of the creator of the Ladyblog,” Chat added when Ladybug didn’t say anything. 

So, it’s definitely the same group of teenagers…

“What? How do you know this?” Ladybug panicked.

Chat scratched the back of his head, “Okay, so Ladyblog girl is—uh—in my class, and for some reason we started talking about that time she found a text book on you, so she wanted to find out our identities.I don’t really know why that has anything to do with me, but suddenly the whole class was in on finding out who we are, and yeah… I just thought you should know.”

Ladybug’s jaw dropped.Chat Noir was in her class.Chat Noir was in her class!She didn’t know what to do with this information.Her partner has been in so close the whole time?How could she miss that?Who could it be?

_No,_ she scolded herself, _the whole point of stopping the contest is so that no one knows either of our identities.You will not try to figure out who.You will not—_

“My Lady?” Chat waved his hand in front of her face.“Are you okay?”

She was not okay.

“Um, yeah,”she said, “that was just…a lot to take in.”She pushed the fact that she personally knows Chat Noir’s civilian self out of the way temporarily.Now was not the time.

“I know.I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything to stop it.”

She ruffled his hair, “It’s okay, kitty.I know it’s impossible to change Al—Ladyblog girl’s mind once she has her mind set on something.Now, we just need to find a way to make sure they don’t find out who we are.”

“Oh, it should be pretty easy to stop them since I’m part of the game,” he said, “At least to keep them away from me.I don’t really know how I can keep them away from you…Unless you’ve changed your mind about telling me your identity?” He waggled his eyebrows.

“Very funny,” she deadpanned, though she noted he did look rather adorable in that moment.

He fake pouted, “Fine. Now, what was your news?”

Right, she was gonna tell him about the Guessing Game.Obviously, he already knew.

“Oh, it’s not important,” she brushed it off.

He narrowed his eyes, “Are you sure? It seemed pretty important.”

“Oh, yeah!” she said a bit too loudly, “We should really just be focused on your thing for now.”

“Okay…”

 

Marinette really wanted to keep her promise to herself that she’d not look for Chat Noir, but the next day in class that was all she could think about.She couldn’t help herself in imagining every single one of her classmates as akuma-fighting partner.The most obvious choice was Adrien.He’s blonde, has green eyes, and a similar build to Chat, but Marinette doubted that she could be that lucky.Maybe it was just wishful thinking on her part.There was no way that both of her crushes could be the same person.Also, Chat may have simply overheard someone in her class talk about the Game.Maybe he was exaggerating when he said he was in Alya’s class. Besides, her miraculous didn’t change her appearance at all, and if that was true for Chat too, Adrien’s hair would be much too short.

Then again, no one in her class had green corneas, so Chat must change more than she did when she transformed.That puts Adrien back at the top of the list, but she wanted to check everyone else first just to be sure.

Ivan? No, he was akumatized.Nathanael? Nope, he was akumatized too.Kim? Akumatized. Nino? Akumatized. Max? Akumatized.In fact, now that she thought about it, Adrien is the only boy in her class that hadn’t been akumatized. 

So, Adrien is Chat Noir. Probably. However, that still didn't make complete sense to her, because Adrien acts nothing like Chat Noir.Adrien is quiet and mild-mannered, while Chat is loud and wild.She could never picture the boy in front of her shamelessly flirting with her and going around Paris saying terrible cat puns in a skin-tight leather suit (no matter how much the thought of that made her swoon.)

She didn’t know Adrien that well, though.She only recently stopped stuttering every time she talked to him, and she still had a hard time thinking of things to say that weren’t completely embarrassing.Maybe Adrien acted more Chat-like with his close friends.Maybe he only acted that way when he was comfortable with someone.She could ask Nino if that was true. He was his best friend after all… Or she could grow-up and try to find out for herself.

Yeah, that’s totally what she’ll do.  She’s going to befriend Adrien Agreste, really get to know him to see if he acts more Chat-like.  She just had to push her feelings aside momentarily.  It’ll be easy.  All she had to do was pretend she was talking to Chat Noir (and odds are she would be talking to Chat Noir.) Looks like she was playing an identity game of her own.

“Girl, what are you thinking right now,” Alya interrupted her internal monologue, “I mean you usually stare at Adrien, but now you’re looking a little psychotic.” “I’m going to befriend Adrien,” she said with determination to rival Ladybug’s.

Alya gave her a confused smile, “I’m pretty sure he already considers you his friend.”

“Probably, but I’m going to actually talk to him like a normal person now.”

Alya snorted, “Whatever you say, girl.Good luck with that.”

Little did her best friend know that she already had all the luck in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr  
> http://plaggplz.tumblr.com/


	3. Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette proposed that she and Adrien work together during the Game, and Alya thinks that everyone going to the scene of an akuma attack is a good way to figure out who Ladybug and Chat Noir are.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

Adrien didn’t know what was up with Marinette.Sure, he’d gotten pretty used to her stares over the past year, but this was different.She looked almost like she was studying him, but not in the dreamy, wistful way she usually did. No, she looked as though she was looking for something under the surface that she’d never seen before.Adrien suddenly felt very exposed. 

Everything was probably fine, though.He just had to keep his focus on the lesson.

Yup.The lesson.It was important that he did not think about the super cute girl behind him or the fact fact that said super cute girl had all of her focus on him for whatever reason.

Okay, this was way too distracting.He had to stop this.Maybe, he should just turn around for a second and make eye contact.That usually made her look away.It’s not like he wanted that.He really wished Marinette wasn’t so afraid of him.She was so amazing around everyone else.He wished she could be that way around him, but maybe he could use Marinette’s inability to make eye contact to his advantage just this once.That way, he could actually focus on the lesson.

He waited for Ms. Bustier to turn her back and write on the board so he could deal with the situation behind him. He turned and locked eyes with Marinette, but she didn’t look away.Instead, she smirked.

This was not the outcome he was expecting.Oh no, what was he supposed to do now?He felt his cheeks heat up.

_Abort mission.Abort mission._

He snapped his head to the front.So much for paying attention to the lecture. 

What could’ve happened in one day that prompted such a drastic change in behavior?Sure, the Guessing Game started, but that shouldn’t have changed anything for he and Marinette specifically. Nothing special happened between the two of them.He didn’t remember even speaking directly to her.

She did seem pretty against the game, though.Maybe something within her snapped when she couldn’t stop it.Maybe she was too out-of-it to realize what she was doing.There was no way that Marinette Dupain-Cheng purposefully smirked at him of all things.Something must be seriously wrong. 

“Adrien!” 

He looked around.He didn’t even notice class ended. Everyone had filed out the classroom. That was, except for Marinette who was standing right in front of him, making direct eye contact.

“Alya kidnapped Nino to talk about strategy for the Game, so it looks like it’s just you and me for lunch today,” she said without mixing her words up at all.What was happening?

“O-oh, okay,” he said, getting up to follow her down the hallway.

“So,” she said, “How do you feel about this whole ‘Guessing Game’ thing? Has it grown on you at all?”

“Uh, I don’t know,” he answered, “I feel kind of neutral about it I guess.”He had to play it safe.She couldn’t find out he was Chat Noir.

“Hm,” she raised an eyebrow. She had to know something.This was strange behavior for Marinette.“Well, I don’t really care that much either.”

Adrien only nodded.

“Maybe we can be ‘on a team,’” she proposed, “That way we can have some fun.We can mess with people, lead them in the most ridiculous directions.”

“Like what?” He asked.

She thought for a second, “Oh, I don’t know…Like maybe Principle Damocles is Ladybug or Miss Bustier is Hawkmoth.”

He laughed, “Those are definitely ridiculous.”

“So, what do you say? Would you like to play our own little game within the Game?” She asked with a confidence he’d never had directed at him, yet it seemed very familiar for a reason he couldn’t quite place.

He thought about it.She did have the exact same plan that he did, though she was doing it purely for fun not to save her identity.It would be nice to have someone helping him…

“You know what? Why not?” He said, “Let’s do it!”

Marinette smiled wide, “Great!”

* * *

 

Marinette couldn’t believe that worked.If she had known that all she had to do to stop stuttering around Adrien was to pretend he was Chat Noir, she would’ve done that months ago.She spent the whole of lunch break just talking to Adrien.It was all she could think about as she sat in class the rest of the day.Adrien was so wonderful and such a dork.It was quite possible he actually was her Chat Noir, but even if he wasn’t, this search was a reason to befriend Adrien finally.It didn’t really matter to her one way or the other.

He still seemed a bit guarded sometimes, though, and not only in the usual fake model smile way.He seemed suspicious of her, which she guessed made sense being that prior to that day she could hardly say one sentence to him without stuttering.She knew he just needed time to get used to it.It was still wonderful, though.She was on cloud 9 nothing could bring her down.

Except, maybe screams coming from outside the school.

Alya cheered, “An akuma! Alright everyone!This our chance.If we wanna find out who Ladybug and Chat Noir are, we all need to go watch the fight.”

Well, that was the stupidest idea Marinette had ever heard. 

“Isn’t there a safer way to find out?” Mylène asked.

“If we want to figure this out, we have to take some risks,” Alya said.

“And we don’t need your cowardice ruining our fun again, Horrificator,” Chloé added.

Mylène flinched.It was a low blow for Chloé to call her by her akuma name.Marinette had heard Alya and Nino talk a lot about the leftover trauma from their akumatizations.Chloé should know how that feels.

“Hey, watch it, Chloé!” Ivan took Mylène’s hand, “Don’t worry, _Mylène_. I’ll keep you safe.”

Mylène only nodded.

“Come on, guys we have no time to lose,” Alix said.

Marinette agreed. She had to get out of there, but she couldn’t out herself as Ladybug either.She glanced at Adrien.He was already standing, fists clenched ready for action. This is a good chance to notice if he disappears as well…

“What are you kids still doing in here?” Miss Bustier burst in the classroom, “We need to evacuate.”

“Anyone not there could be Ladybug or Chat Noir,” Alya taunted, and with that, the whole class ran out the door.

_Ok, Marinette, you can do this without revealing your identity,_ she thought as she ran with the crowd.She could no longer see Adrien, but he could’ve just rushed ahead or fallen behind.The problem was she was still with Alya, who would surely notice if her best friend disappeared right when Ladybug appeared.

Luckily, the akuma was directly in front of the bakery.Suddenly, Marinette had a good idea.

“I need to check on my parents,” Marinette said to Alya, who was already recording the attack.

“Girl, you need to be here for the Game!” She said.

“I’ll only be a minute.I’m sorry!” She ran to the bakery, right past her parents, and up to her room.

“Good thinking, Marinette!” Tikki said.

“Thanks! Tikki, spots on!” 

And with that, she climbed up onto her balcony just as Chat happened to touch down on it.

“Oh, My Lady!” He said, “What are you doing here?”

_Yikes._

“Oh, uh, Marinette wanted me to check on her parents for her while she’s hiding out somewhere.”

He blinked once, twice, “Well, that’s very nice of you. Sorry it took me a little while to get here.I had to ditch my classmates without them getting too suspicious.”

“No worries.Do what you need to to keep your identity safe,” she said, “Now, any idea what we’re in for with this akuma?”

He looked out to the akuma, “Looks like his power is literally a potato launcher.”

Ladybug looked at their enemy.It looked to be a boy of around 12 decked out in full camouflage and holding a potato launcher.She would pay money for the full story behind this one.

“Well, I bet I know where the akuma is,” she chuckled, “Let’s do this.”

 

“Purr-fect as always, Bugaboo,” Chat Noir said after their celebratory fist bump.Ladybug was right about the akuma being in the launcher.It had only taken about 10 minutes to finish up the attack.

She tousled his hair, “Thanks, Kitty, but I think anyone could’ve beaten that akuma.”

“Maybe, but no one could do with as much beauty and grace as you did,” he kissed her hand, sending a tingling sensation up her arm even through her suit.It would make things so much easier if he was Adrien (as long as Chat was actually serious about his flirting.) She was so far gone for both of them.

“Seriously, though I think Hawkmoth is running out of ideas. These akuma have been getting more and more ridiculous lately,” she said, pushing her feelings aside.

He laughed, “I can’t wait to see what can be more ridiculous than a potato launcher.”

“Not much.”

Her miraculous beeped.Her heart sank she didn’t want to leave him just yet.They never were able to spend as much time together as she wanted to.That was the biggest negative about keeping their identities secret.With any luck, that would be remedied soon, though, as long as she was heading in the right direction with the Game.

“I guess that’s my cue to leave,” she said.

He nodded solemnly, “Yeah, I better get back to class, otherwise people will start to get suspicious of me.”

“Yeah, we wouldn’t want that,” she said.

Both of their miraculous beeped simultaneously.

“Well, until next time, Chat Noir,” she gave him one last scratch behind his leather cat ears before heading back to her balcony to detransform.She had to get back before Adrien (granted that Adrien wasn’t with her classmates the whole time.)

 

“Alright, everyone!” Alya announced as Marinette entered the classroom.Chloé and Sabrina were standing behind her, holding a sheet in front of the blackboard.How they arranged that so fast totally alluded Marinette, but it was probably Chloé, “Here are the results from out first event of the Game.”

Marinette held her breath.She really hoped her going home negated her from being a possible Ladybug.She also kind of hoped that Adrien was still a possibility.He was in the classroom already when she walked in, but he could’ve just taken a more direct route after he de-transformed.He didn’t have to go through the bakery like she did after all. 

Chloé and Sabrina dropped the sheet.It was a table.One column read “Possibly Ladybug and Chat Noir.”The other read “Not Ladybug and Chat Noir.” The only people on the latter list were Alya, Chloé, Alix, and Kim.Marinette tried not to laugh.Of course those four were the only ones who would be brave (or stupid) enough to go to an akuma attack.

“Now, you probably see a problem with this list,” Alya said, “None of you came!Where did you go?”

Nino was the first to speak, “Sorry, Al.I’m down for like speculating who Ladybug is and all, but going to an akuma attack? No thanks.”

“Unbelievable,” Chloé shook her head, “We need to be willing to do some crazy shit if we want to find this out, people!If I went there you can!”

“She has a point,” Alya said, “But it’s fine.We’ll just have to think of safer ways to find this out I guess.”She sat down in her seat in defeat.

“I told you no one was gonna go,” Nino said as he sat down.

She huffed, “I hate it when you’re right. I mean, Marinette fucking went home, and where were you Mr. Model?” She turned on her other two friends.

“I got stuck in the crowd.I couldn’t get close,” he shrugged Marinette narrowed her eyes, _Hmmm…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on Tumblr  
> http://plaggplz.tumblr.com


	4. Pun-derful

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien and Marinette talk strategy at the bakery and Adrien throws down a few cat puns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

"Ok, so what's the plan again?" Marinette said as she sat across from Adrien at a table in her parents' bakery.  The two of them have spent every lunch break in the past week together talking strategy and just getting to know each other.

"We have to plant some fake evidence somewhere I think," Adrien said, "like I don't know...A ring like Chat Noir's on Miss Bustier's desk?"

Marinette chuckled, "Yeah, 'cause that's believable."

“Hey, you never know,” he said.

She just looked at him incredulously.

“Okay, maybe you're right," he admitted, "We should wait to do something like that when the Game has been going on a while and they get really desperate."

"Yeah, but if all of the rest of their 'events' are like the one earlier this week, desperation will come quicker than you think," she said.

He nodded, "That was truly cat-astrophic."

_Really? A cat pun?_

She groaned dramatically, "Oh my god. You did _not_ just pun." 

“So what if I did?” he said with a dope-y smile that reminder her more of a golden retriever than the black cat she wished she saw.

She only shook her head, though she was unable to contain her grin.

"What's the matter, Mari?" he smirked (there’s her kitty), "Don't you find my puns paws-itively delightful?"

"No, I definitely do not!"

His smug grin only got wider, "Well, I think they're pun-derful.”

"That's it! We can't eat lunch together anymore. It was nice knowing you!" she said, pretending like she was getting up to leave.

He grabbed her by the arm to stop her, "Mari, no! You can't leave meow!  I can’t live without mew."

“Oh my God,” she groaned, “You’re worse than Chat Noir!”

“Are you trying yo insult me?” He put his hand on his chest dramatically, “It’s an honor to be compared to the most claw-some punster in Paris.”

Marinette could help from laughing. If Adrien truly is her kitty, it would be even more ridiculous, “Oh please.”

“Come one, Marinette,” he said, “I seem to remember you saying that Chat Noir is your favorite hero.” There was a hint of genuine curiosity in his voice, like he really wanted to know if it was true.He is _so_ her kitty.

“Well, he is,” she blushed.

“Why?” He asked, the teasing tone in his voice from their pun discussion long gone.

“I just think he’s great,” she said, “He’s saved me many times, and I don’t think most people give him enough credit.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, a lot of people seem to think of him as a sidekick when that is not at all true,” she said.

“But Ladybug’s the only one who can purify akuma,” Adrien said, “Like if Chat Noir couldn’t make it to a fight, Ladybug would be fine, but the other way around, Chat would be a disaster.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” she said a bit to fiercely for someone who is supposed to be a normal civilian, “I don’t think Ladybug would be anything without Chat Noir. They’re a team.They need each other equally. You can’t have one without the other.”

“But Chat Noir is always getting possessed and fighting against Ladybug,” he said.

“Only because I don’t think he realizes how important he really is.”

Adrien’s lips parted in shock.

She continued, “He’s always sacrificing himself for her, thinking she’s more important, and it think it tears Ladybug up inside that he doesn’t find more value in himself.” 

Marinette knew she was letting too much of her actual feelings come out, that she could be compromising her identity, but she didn’t care. She hated how no one every gave her partner the credit he deserved . There was no way that she would have been able to be a hero without his encouraging words during their first battle together, and there have been so many times since then that he has helped her out more than he knows. At this point she was 90% sure that Chat Noir was sitting in front of her, and he needed to hear this.

* * *

“Wow,” Adrien stared at her intensely, “I didn’t realize you payed that much attention to our heroes.” He was still soaking in everything she said.He knew that Marinette was fiercely dedicated to everything she cared about, but he didn’t know he cared so much about him.He hasn’t met many people who prefer him over Ladybug, and the fact that it was beautiful, amazing _Marinette_ of all people made his heart swell in ways it normally only did for Ladybug.She was such a great friend.

She laughed nervously, “Well, I hear Alya talk about it all the time, so its only natural that I form an opinion.”

“Well, I think that Chat Noir would be honored to have such an amazing girl as his fierce supporter,” he said genuinely. 

She blushed as she always did when he complimented her. He didn’t get why he always made her so uncomfortable.He was just trying to be friendly.He always thought that’s what friends do, and Alya and Nino never get this uncomfortable when he said nice things about them. 

“Well, I think that more people should feel the same way I do,” she said.

He didn’t think he needed anyone else to believe it. In that moment, the way she felt about him was the only thing he cared about.

“Marinette, don’t you think it’s time to head back to school?” Mrs. Cheng came from the bakery’s kitchen.

Marinette’s blush faded, “Right! Thanks, Mama.” She grabbed his hand and started for the door, “We have to hurry, or we’ll be late!”

He didn’t really know why she thought he wouldn’t be able to keep up.He’s pretty athletic. He didn’t need to hold her hand to keep up, but he wasn’t really complaining.The contact was kind of nice actually.He didn’t really want to let go, so he didn’t.Not when they reached the school, or as they walked through the hallway, or even as they walked into Ms. Bustier’s class.

They only let go when Alya wolf whistled as they walked to their seats.Then, Marinette dropped his hand like it was poison.He didn’t get it.He and Marinette were just friends.

The rest of the day droned on and on, but eventually the day was over.Unfortunately, no one left the classroom after the final bell.No, it was time for another Guessing Game event.

“Alright, everyone!” Alya said, “Since no one seems willing to risk it all for these games.We’ve thought of an easier way. I don’t know why it wasn’t the first thing we did honestly.”

“So, obviously, if you’ve been akumatized you can’t be Ladybug or Chat Noir,” Chloé added, “So, all we had to do is rule out who’s been akumatized.” Her expression turned sour, “and only two people in this classroom haven’t been akumatized.”

Oh no! This wasn’t good. He had never been akumatized.They figured him out.Who’s the other person? 

“Adrien and Marinette,” Alya said, “Explain yourselves.”

Marinette?Wait, do they know for sure that Ladybug’s in their class? Has his Lady really been behind him this whole time? Was he holding hands with her just this afternoon!?Why hadn’t Ladybug mentioned that she was in his class then? 

Wait, but if it was Marinette, would that explain why she suddenly was able to talk to him more?Did she know he was Chat Noir? Hold on, did he team up with Marinette before or after he told Ladybug he was in this class?He wracked his brain but he couldn’t remember.These past few weeks have all been a blur of trying to keep his identity safe. Why wasn’t he paying more attention?

“Guys, we’ve been over this. I’m not Ladybug,” the girl behind him, who he just noticed looks a lot like Ladybug, insisted.

“I don’t know, Mari,” Alya said, “All signs are kind of pointing to you right now.”

“Oh my God, there are other classes in this school that use that history book, Al,” she said, “There are probably even other schools in Paris that use it.”

“I don’t know,” Max said, “Statistically, you don’t see many people with jet black hair and blue eyes. It’s just not a common combination.”

Marinette remained calm, “There are millions of people in Paris, Max. I cannot be the only one with that combination, and for all you guys know the magic changes their appearance!”

That was a good point, his miraculous changed his hair and eyes. It’s possible that his Lady looked a bit different as a civilian…but Marinette wouldn’t have to change at all to be her, just add a mask, and a very convincing Ladybug would be standing right in front of him. 

“You just look a lot like Ladybug,” Nino said, studying her carefully.

“Guys, there is no way I’m Ladybug! I can barely walk in a straight line without falling flat on my face. How could I swing across the Paris skyline?” She said.

“She’s right,” Chloé said, “There’s no way _she_ could be Ladybug.Ladybug is way better than Marinette.”

She really wasn’t, though.Sure, Ladybug was a literal superheroine, but Marinette had all of His Lady’s best traits.Bravery, dedication, loyalty, and he’s seem more and more of Marinette confidence lately. What if they were the same?

But if she was his Lady, the whole class still shouldn’t know about it.How could he throw them in the wrong direction.That was the whole point of him being in the Game.

“Guy, she says she’s not Ladybug. Mari wouldn’t lie. She hates liars,” Adrien said.

“Hm,” Alya said, “That is true. Marinette, do you swear you’re not Ladybug?”

“Yes! I just told you I’m not Ladybug!” She said.

Alya pursed her lips, “but do you _swear_ that you’re not?”

Marinette sighed, “Yes, I swear.”

“Alright,” Alya said, “I guess we’ll have to look elsewhere then. Now, let’s deal with Sunshine Boy over here.” 

Suddenly, all eyes were on him, and he wasn’t happy about it.

“Please, Adrien couldn’t be Chat Noir,” Marinette said.

“Why not?” Alya asked.

_Yeah, why not?_ Adrien thought. He was a bit offended that she didn’t think so. She really liked Chat Noir, and she seemed to be starting to like him. He was just telling her cat puns at lunch today.What could be more Chat Noir than that?

“Adrien is so busy all of the time! How could he have time to be a superhero over everything else?” Marinette explained.

He didn’t really have time. He gave up a lot of sleep to be Chat Noir, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I hate to say this, but Marinette’s right,” Chloé said, “Mr. Agreste is the worst with giving Adrien free time.”

“And we don’t even have the book evidence to know that Chat Noir is even our age!” Marinette added.

Why was she so against him being Chat Noir? More importantly, why was he so upset that his friend didn’t think he could be her favorite superhero? (He’d deal with that question another time, though.)

“Geez, okay you two,” Alya said, “Let’s hear what Sunshine has to say for himself.”

And then, everyone was staring at him awaiting his defense of himself.

“Um, what they said,” he said.

“Really?” Alya said, “That’s all you have to say.”

He shrugged, “I’m not Chat Noir. I don’t know what to tell you.”

Alya huffed, “I’m starting to think no one else cares about this as much as I do.”

“I know that no one cares about this as much as you do,” Alix mumbled.

“Nino,” Alya whined, drawing out the “o” in his name, “help me!”

“I think everyone just wants to go home, Al,” Nino said.

Multiple people agreed to this audibly.

Alya sighed, “Fine. Well, talk about this again soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it!
> 
> Follow me on tumblr!  
> http://plaggplz.tumblr.com/


	5. Chat's Out of the Bag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette finds out for sure that Adrien is Chat Noir and starts acting weird.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

“So, how’s the Game going?” Ladybug asked the next night while they were on patrol.

“Oh, uh, it sure is interesting,” he smiled sheepishly.“Yesterday, was a bit of a close call…”

Ladybug raised an eyebrow, more in interest than concern, which surprised him. “Really? What happened?”

“They finally rooted out the people who have been akumatized,” he said, “Turns only me and one other person haven’t been.”

Her eyes widened in realization before she went back to a blank expression, “Oh, really?What are the odds of that?” Why isn’t she more concerned right now?

“I know! It’s kind of crazy,” he said, “But don’t worry. I think they ruled me out.”

“How did you manage that?” She smirked, sitting down on the edge of the building they were standing on and gesturing for him to join her.

“Well, I didn’t really.” He sat down. “My friends did, actually. I guess I act so different when I’m a civilian, that no one can see me as Chat Noir.”

* * *

He didn’t really, though. Marinette saw so much of Chat Noir in Adrien once she started looking. He wasn’t as different as he thought he was.

“I’m sure that’s not true, Kitty,” she said, ruffling his hair, “Chat and Ad—um, your civilian self are not two separate people.I’m sure that there is much more Chat in your everyday life then you know.” She mentally cursed herself for almost saying Adrien.She wasn’t even 100% sure.

He thought about it for a moment, “I guess that’s true.One of my friends even compared me to Chat the other day.”

She compared Adrien to Chat the other day…

“Really?” She said, “What were you doing?”

He grinned, “Making puns.”

“Of course you were!” She shook her head, but couldn’t contain her smile.

“My friend reacted very similarly to you, My Lady,” he said.

_Probably because she is me,_ she thought.

“I like this friend,” she joked, “Tell me about them.”

“Well, she was one of the first people I met when I started public school,” he said, “We kind of started off on the wrong foot, but I apologized and we became friends.Though, we weren’t very close until recently.She seem really uncomfortable around me for a while, but one day she just changed…”

_That sure sounds like me._

“We are actually working together in the Guessing Game,” he continued, “I don’t really know why she asked me, though, since her best friend literally runs the Ladyblog.”

_That’s definitely me,_ she thought, _holy shit._

Okay, she had to stay cool. She didn’t want to give herself away just yet.

“Wow, she seems pretty cool,” she said, her voice only wavering slightly.

“She’s the coolest,” he said, “I see a lot of you in her actually.”

_Holy shit!_

“Wow, would you look at the time!” She said, “We should really get back to patrol. See you, kitty!”

And with that, she was off.

* * *

Adrien didn’t get it.

Ladybug was acting so strange the night before. First, she didn’t seem concerned at all that he was almost had his identity discovered, and then she just ran off in the middle of their conversation and was acting jumpy the whole rest of the night.It was so weird. All he said that Marinette was cool and reminded him of Ladybug. There’s nothing weird about that. It was a compliment to both of them! He didn’t get it.Why would him talking about Marinette bother Ladybug at all? 

Unless…did she think he had a crush on Marinette? Was she _jealous_?

No, that couldn’t be it. As far as he knew his Lady had no intention of ever returning his affections, and he was okay with that…mostly.Besides, he didn’t even like Marinette like that. She was just a friend, a very attractive friend that had starred in a few very confusing dreams, but a friend nonetheless.He was not the type to like more than one girl at once.That would feel almost like cheating, except you know, he wasn’t actually dating Ladybug in the first place. He just definitely didn’t have a crush on Marinette.

“Dude,” Nino burst into the classroom, “have you seen Marinette today yet?”

“No, why?”

Nino sat down with a knowing grin, “Just you wait, dude.”

“What do you mean?” Adrien said

“—and I finally have an idea for an event that will actually work!” Alya’s voice traveled from somewhere down the hallway. Oh god, she was probably talking to Marinette.He didn’t know if he was ready to face whatever Nino was talking about.He did not like the face his best friend was giving him right now

“It better work. I’m getting sick of all of this going no where,” said Chloé, who was the person Alya was talking to. Where was Marinette? And how had Nino seen her already? Adrien got to school extra early today in an attempt to beat the rain storm that was already in full force, and it sounded like Marinette had too.Where is she?

“I think it will,” Alya said, leaving Chloé to sit in her seat behind Nino.

“Hey, Al,” Nino turned around to greet his girlfriend? (Honestly, Adrien could keep up with what was going on with those two.)

“Hey,” she said, “Have you two seen Mari yet?” And there was that look again, Alya was looking at him like she knew something that he didn’t, and he did not like it.

“I have,” Nino said, “Adrien hasn’t.”

Alya chuckled, “Oh, this is gonna be good.”

“Why does everyone keep saying that?” Adrien said.

“It looks just great, Marinette!” Rose’s voice carried down the hallway this time, “And you made this whole outfit yourself?”

“Yup,” the sound of his friend’s voice made his heart skip a beat, but only because he was anticipating whatever Nino and Alya were talking about (obviously), “I’ve been working on it for a while.” Oh God, their voices were getting closer.Oh my God what was he about to see?

Marinette walked in the door wearing an outfit that made his jaw drop.She was wearing a v-neck, black t-shirt with a green paw print decal that fit her just right, a simple bright green circle skirt that reached her mid-thighs, and black flats and knee socks with cat ears on the top.The whole look was finished off with purr-fectly pointed eyeliner and black lipstick.She was wearing an outfit inspired by his superhero alter ego and she looked _good._ God, he couldn’t take his eye off of her.Not even when she caught him staring and smirked as she walked past him to her seat, her hips swaying with each step.

“Hey, boys,” she said as she sat down.

“Hey, Mar,” Nino said. 

There was a moment of awkward silence where Adrien was still gawking at his totally platonic friend, Marinette, before Nino elbowed him reminding him to be a functioning human being.

“Hi, Beautiful!” He blurted out, “I mean, isn’t it such a beautiful morning?”  
Marinette raised an eyebrow, “Adrien, it’s raining.”

Alya and Nino did a really poor job of concealing their laughter.

“Yeah,” he said, “but it _was_ before it started raining, wasn’t it?”

“I guess so, “ she seemed confused, but amused.He was glad she was enjoying his current misery.

“Okay, girl,” Alya changed the subject, “You have got to make me and outfit like this for Ladybug.”

“Dude, what the hell was that?,” Nino whispered.

“I-I don’t know,” He whimpered.

“Why don’t you just ask her out already?” 

“What? No?” He protested, “It’s not like that!”

“Sure, it’s not,” Nino said, “because you blush so much when any of your friends wear hardly-even revealing outfits.”

“Nino,” he started.

“You are so hopeless, dude,” Nino interrupted, “Just admit it you like her.”

He shook his head, “No, I like—“

“Ladybug. I know,” he rolled his eyes, “But did you ever think of going after someone more…attainable.I mean you’ve only met Ladybug like twice, but you see Marinette everyday, and you obviously find her at least attractive given your drooling over her outfit just a few minutes ago.”

“Everyone finds Marinette attractive,” he protested.

“Everyone doesn’t look her the way you just did, though.”

“I have to study,” Adrien huffed. What did he have to do to prove he only liked Marinette as a friend?

“Whatever, dude.”

Adrien ignored his friend simply staring at his book angrily. Who does Nino think he is telling telling Adrien how he feels.If Adrien did have a crush on Marinette, he would definitely be the first to know.Not Nino, not Alya, and not anybody else.

“Anything interesting?”

Adrien jumped.

“Sorry, did I scare you?” Marinette said, “You just were staring so intently at this history book, I felt like I must have missed something.”

“No. I was just zoned out I guess,” he said.  
“You’re acting strange today,” She observed, “Something on your mind?”

_Definitely not you,_ he thought.

“Nothing important,” he said instead.

“Okay…” she didn’t seem to believe her, “Well, how much did you study for the history quiz last night?”

“Probably not as much as I should,” he admitted.

“Me neither,” she said, “I had every intention of starting early, but I could help but pro-cat-sinate.”

She just used a cat pun. Oh my God, she was definitely trying to kill him. 

“There’s an akuma!” Alya shouted with delight, “Let’s go, people!”

And with that, everyone started rushing out of the room, Adrien included, though he didn’t make it too far…

“Adrien, wait!” Marinette grabbed him by the arm, stopping him in his tracks.

“What—?”

She gave him a hard peck on the cheek. 

“For good luck,” she said with an awkward smile before running out the door.

Adrien was frozen, standing in the middle of the classroom.Everyone else was gone, but he hardly processed it. All he could process was the heat rising to his face and the tingles starting from the place her lips touched his cheek and spreading to his entire body.

Okay, maybe he did have a crush on Marinette.

“Come on, kid. There will time time for you to scream into your pillow about this later,” Plagg said. 

He was right, he needed to pull himself together and fight this akuma.

“Right,” he said, “Plagg, claws out!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on Tumblr if you want idk  
> http://plaggplz.tumblr.com


	6. Smug Little Bug

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug let's Adrien know she knows he's Chat Noir.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

Marinette isn’t sure what she’s doing. Sure, she needed some way to tell Adrien she knew he was Chat without letting him know she was Ladybug, but she hadn’t planned on doing it by kissing him!She just panicked and remembered her very black lipstick she put on in the morning to match her Chat Noir themed outfit that she may or may not have put on to tease Adrien, and thought how it would make the perfect kiss mark… Next thing she knew, she was kissing him.She wasn’t sure where that burst of confidence came from, but she couldn’t say she was complaining when a very flustered Chat Noir joined her to fight this akuma. 

In fact, it made her impossibly giddy when she saw the perfectly formed black kiss mark on his cheek. Suddenly, spending those few minutes scrubbing off her lipstick before transforming was totally worth it. This was gonna be _good._

“You alright there, Kitty?” She said with a smirk, “We’re you in the middle of something important?”

“W-what? No! I was just—at school.”

She laughed, “And do you normally have girls leaving kiss marks on you at school?”

His eyes widened, “I have a kiss mark?!” He frantically started rubbing his cheek to get it off.

“Kitty, you’re only making it worse! You’ll need a make-up remover for that,” she said, “Now, we kind of have an akuma to fight right now, but I would love to talk more about this mystery girl later.”

“I-it’s not like that!” He protested, “I mean not yet anyway. I don’t know!”

What? Not yet?! 

“Um, right,” Ladybug said, hoping her partner didn’t notice her blush, “Let’s finish off this akuma.”

 

And, so they did. It didn’t take long Chat didn’t even have to use Cataclysm, but that didn’t stop him from rushing off right after they’re regular celebratory fist bump. It wasn’t long before she saw Adrien run out from a nearby alleyway. This was her chance!  
“Adrien,” she touched down on the street right in front of him, “What are you doing so near to the akuma attack? You could’ve gotten hurt.”

“Oh—uh—I got stuck there on my way to school,” he said, “I stayed out of trouble, though.”

Ladybug raised an eyebrow, “Didn’t school start a while ago, though?”

“Um, yeah, but I had a photoshoot today, so I was going in late,” he said.

If Ladybug wasn’t Marinette and didn’t already know that he had been in school all morning, that would have been a totally valid excuse, but that wasn’t the case.

She hummed, “So, I guess that’s where you got that lipstick on your cheek?You know, it’s funny. I feel like I’ve seen that exact mark before…”

“Y-you have?!” He squeaked, “What a funny coincidence.”

“Maybe…” she said, “But you know I’ve never been one to believe in coincidences, Kitty.Talk to you later.” Then, she swung away on her yo-yo, leaving a very shocked Adrien Agreste standing in the middle of the sidewalk.

* * *

_Holy shit. Holy shit! Holy. Shit._

Adrien couldn’t stop those two words from running through his head.Ladybug figured it out. She _knows!_ She called him Kitty in his civilian form! All because he had a stupid lipstick mark on his cheek.Why didn’t he think about wiping it off before he transformed?

That’s right. It’s because he couldn’t think of much other than the thought of his very-platonic-friend Marinette’s lips on his cheek, and how much he would like to feel them on his.This was new.He had only ever thought about kissing Ladybug before…but Ladybug wasn’t interested.She never once showed any interest in him as more than a friend.Besides, with the problem that he didn’t know who she was behind the masked made it so she was always unattainable.Marinette, on the other hand, she was always attainable, whether it be sitting behind him in class or texting him while he was bored at photoshoots, and she kissed his cheek! 

Okay, he needed to calm down.

So, he had a crush on two girls at once.So what? That happens to other people, right? Or was he just a terrible person? 

He couldn’t think about this anymore! He needed to get back to school before people got suspicious.

 

“Anybody find out anything interesting?” Alya sighed as Adrien walked into the classroom.She had been growing more and more frustrated with her classmates as the Game went on, but it seems she’s reached resignation. 

“I don’t think we’re gonna figure it out, Al,” Nino said.

She pouted, “I know.”

“Hey, dude,” Nino sing-songed, noticing Adrien standing in the doorway, “What have you been up to?”

“Nothing,” Adrien said warily.Why was he acting weird?

“Really?” He said, “What’s with that black smudge that looks suspiciously like cheekmarks?”

Adrien really needed to stop forgetting that was there.

“Oh, I wonder who was wearing black lipstick today?” Alya said, joining the conversation.Meanwhile, Marinette was trying to hold in her laughter at her seat.Why wasn’t she as embarrassed about this as he was?

* * *

Marinette didn’t know why she wasn’t more embarrassed by this.She guessed it was nice to have Adrien be the flustered one for once.This also all could’ve been avoidable if he just took off the stupid lipstick.

Alya turned to Marinette, “It’s a shame all of it smudged off, girl.It really pulled together your whole outfit.”

“Thanks, Alya,” she smiled, “I think I like it better on Adrien, though.” 

Where was this bravery coming from? Alya and Nino looked at each other in shocked amusement.

Adrien turned redder than a tomato, “W-what?”

“You heard me, hot stuff,” she said, and to finish it off, she winked.

“Alright, class,” Miss Bustier walked into the room, “Let’s just pick up right where we left off, shall we?”

The whole class settled down to their seats. Adrien sat down in front of her, still bright red and avoiding eye-contact at all costs.

Today was going to be fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr @plaggplz


	7. Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug challenges Chat to find her civilian form, Adrien and Marinette are awkward, and the final even of The Guessing Game is announced

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

“So, now you know I’m Adrien,” Chat Noir skipped the greeting at their next patrol.

“That I do,” Ladybug said.

“How’d you find out?” He said, “Well, I know the lipstick, but was there anything else?”

“Maybe,” Ladybug smirked, “Or maybe not.”

“Come on, Bug,” he whined.

“I’m sorry. I’m must happy I won that Ladyblogger game,” Ladybug laughed.

“And I would love to know how you did it.”

“What makes you think I’d be willing to give away my secrets?”

“It’s only fair. You know mine,” Chat countered.

He had a point…

“Fine,” Ladybug said, “There were a few other things…”

“Like…”

“Everything about your personality!Adrien is so Chat sometimes it hurts!” She said.

“So, you must know Adrien, then,” Chat said inquisitively.

“I never said that,” she said.

Chat shook his head, “But there’s no way you would know I’m Chat from my personality unless you knew me personally.”

“I really wish that wasn’t true,” she looked at him seriously, “I wish you could be yourself more, Kitty.”

He looked shocked for a second, before pouting, “Don’t change the subject! You totally know me!”

Ladybug just shrugged. “Maybe…”

“Come on. Please, My Lady?”

“I mean, all you had to do was say a cat pun and I started to put the pieces together,” Ladybug said.

“Are you saying you know me in your civilian form?”

“I’m saying that maybe you should try a bit harder on that Game of yours. I’m a lot closer than you think.” 

* * *

“I still can’t believe you kissed Adrien yesterday,” Alya said as she and Marinette walked through the school corridor.

“On the cheek,” Marinette interjected.

“And then you winked at him!” Alya laughed, “I don’t know what’s come over you, but it’s totally amazing, girl!”

“I honestly don’t know what happened either,” Marinette admitted.

“Look, there’s hot stuff now,” Alya pointed behind her.

Marinette turned around and locked eyes with her crush and partner.Both of them froze.Looks like yesterday’s bravery has worn off.Time to deal with the consequences of her actions.

“What’s up, lover boy,” Alya said.

“S-stop calling me that,” Adrien said.

Alya shook her head, “Not until you two explain to me what happened yesterday.”

“Nothing happened,” Marinette said a bit too loudly.

“Uh-huh,” Alya said, unconvinced, “Well, I guess I’ll leave you guys to it, then.”She saw Nino across the hall and went to join him, leaving Adrien and Marinette alone with each other for the first time since she kissed him (that Adrien knew of anyway.)

“So,” Marinette said.

“So.”

Why was this awkward?Yesterday wasn’t awkward.She had no problem talking to him when she was Chat, but maybe that’s because he didn’t know that she was Ladybug.She could easily pretend that she didn’t leave kiss marks on his cheek yesterday when he didn’t know who she was.Now, they both knew, and yet neither of them knew what to do about it.

“Well, Ijust remember I forgot something back at class,” she squeaked

“And I have to go to the bathroom,” he said.

“Great, see you later!”And with that, she ran to class.

She groaned as she plopped down dramatically in her seat.

“What just happened, girl?” Alya asked.

Marinette sighed, “I’m just as hopeless as before.Yesterday was some kind of weird anomaly.”

Alya patted her back. “There, there.”

* * *

“Okay, so I know we’re all just want this Game to be over,” Chloé began as soon as the lunch bell rang, “Even Alya has given up.”

“I can’t do this anymore,” Alya cried, her head in her hands on her desk.

Adrien was really glad to hear that.He couldn’t wait for this Game to be over (after he figured out which one of his classmates was Ladybug of course.)

“Right,” Chloé said, “So, I propose one final event, and if we can’t find out anything from this one, we throw in the towel.”

“I second that!” Alya said.

“And what will the event be exactly,” Max asked.

“Ladybug and Chat Noir are patrolling tonight, so why don’t we just trail them to see where they go home?”

This was a terrible idea.He and Ladybug have always taken really complicated routes home purposely to stop anything exactly like this from happening.

Alya perked up, “You’re a genius!”

“Perfect,” Chloé said, “So, they go patrolling at around 7, so what do you say we meet at 6:30 at the Eiffel Tower?”

“Sure,” Alya said, “See you all there.”And with that, the whole class started leaving for lunch.

“Marinette, wait!” Adrien said stopping her from moving out of his seat.He needed to tell he was actually gonna try to win the Game now.

“Yes?” She said. Holding her school bag awkwardly on her lap.

“So, I know things are awkward between us right now for reasons that I definitely think we should talk about later, but now I need your help finding out who Ladybug is,” he said, the words pouring out of his mouth almost too quickly to understand.

“Why?” She said.

“Let’s just say I have it on very good authority that Ladybug wouldn’t mind me finding out,” he said.

She smiled warmly. “Okay,” she dropped her voice to whisper, “but wouldn’t that be putting your identity in danger to everyone else?”

“Huh?” 

Adrien was confused.It almost sounded like she just said he had a secret identity.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to find out it just happened,” Marinette said.

What was she she saying?

Oh no.

“You know?” He whisper-yelled.

She smiled guiltily, “I saw my lipstick on Chat Noir’s cheek on the Ladyblog.”

Wait, there was pictures on the Ladyblog! Did that mean the whole class knew?

“Don’t worry,” Marinette read his mind, “It was hardly noticeable in the picture.No one else but me would be able to tell.” She blushed and looked away.

“Okay,” he said, “well, then, that makes this easier. Ladybug figured me out too, and apparently she’s in our class, so I need you to help me find her.”

“It shouldn’t be hard to narrow it down,” she said with a mischievous look in her eyes.What was that about?

“So you’ll help me?”

She shrugged, “Sure, why not. Let’s find your Bugaboo.”

“Great!” He exclaimed before that last word registered in his brain.

Wait, how’d she know about that nickname? He didn’t remember a time he’d said it in public.In fact, he was almost positive he’d never said in public.Then, that must mean…

“Wait,” he said, “Is that you My Lady?”

Looking at her just then, it was so obvious! Her pigtails and bright blue eyes, her proud smile… Why was everyone having such a hard time with this Guessing Game? She looks exactly like Ladybug. Oh my God, he was so stupid! She was right there the whole time!

“I told you I was closer than you think.”

“Oh my God!” He sprung up out of his chair and wrapped his arms around her, “Thank goodness it’s you!”

“Now we both won,” She said reaching a hand up to run through his hair.

“I’m so glad I found you!” He squeezed her even tighter.

“Me too,” she pulled away enough to look into his eyes, “Now, what do you say we have some fun with our classmates one more time?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more to go!
> 
> follow me on tumblr @plaggplz


	8. The Final Event

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The classmates witness something very interesting while watching Ladybug and Chat Noir patrol.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my beta @MKeyes2013 as well as my wonderful responders @applejjuice and @alicetabitha
> 
> Check out their beautiful artwork!  
> http://applejjuice.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17  
> http://alicetabitha.tumblr.com/tagged/mbb2k17

“What are they doing?” Chloé hissed, “How long are they just gonna sit there?”

The whole class (minus Adrien and Marinette) had been not-so-subtly hiding behind a tree across the street from the Notre Dame for over an hour now, and all Ladybug and Chat Noir have done since they finished their very long patrol is sit and talk.They couldn’t even hear what they were saying.

“Sh,” Alya scolded, “Maybe we’ll see something interesting.”

“Or a whole lot of nothing!” Chloé groaned.

“Quiet!” Alya said.

Another minute passed and nothing happened.

“I find it kind of nice that Ladybug and Chat Noir are like actually friends,” Rose broke the silence, “It kind of reminds you that their just like us, you know?”

Nino smiled, “Yeah, Paris’s superheroes just hanging out on the ledge of the Notre Dame.”

“What are you talking about? Of course they’re friends!” Alya said, “Maybe they’re even more than friends…”

“Oh, not with this again!” Nino groaned

“I’m just saying.I think we all ship it deep down,” Alya said.

“Whatever,” Nino said, “I wonder what their talking about?”

* * *

“I feel kind of bad for them,” Chat Noir said.

“Don’t,” Ladybug replied, “They brought this upon themselves.”

“It looks like they’re getting antsy,” Chat laughed, “Chloé looks like she wants to kill someone.”

“Doesn’t she always look like she wants to kill someone?Or maybe just when she’s looking at me,” Ladybug laughed.

“She’s just jealous of you,” Chat said, “Imagine how she’d freak if she knew you were Ladybug.”

“Which is precisely why she can never find out.”

“Yup,” Chat nodded, “The only two people who can know our identities is us.”

“Which is why we’re still ‘patrolling’ at,” she looked at the clock on her yoyo, “Almost 2 in the morning.”

Chat leaned his head on her shoulder, “It’s worth it to spend time with you, My Lady.”

She stiffened, suddenly flustered, “We should probably talk about yesterday. Shouldn’t we?”

“I guess,” he lifted his head off of her shoulder to look at her.He was a bit afraid of where this was going.What if she still didn’t like him as more than a friend? What if she regrets kissing him?

“So, I kissed your cheek out of no where…”

“Yeah,” he affirmed, “Why’d you do that?”

“Well, I panicked because I need a way to reveal to you that I knew without letting you know that I’m me. Does that make sense?” She asked

So, it was only part of the Game…

“Kinda,” he said solemnly.

“That’s not to say I didn’t want to! God, I’ve wanted to do something like that for a very long time,” she corrected, “I just thought that lipstick would make a distinguishable mark that you could still see when your transformed, and I realize now how ridiculous and overcomplicated this plan was. I should have just told you.”

“Maybe,” he said, “but that’s okay because I know now, and you just said that you’ve wanted to kiss me for a long time.”

She blushed, “Well, yeah.”

“Which me?” He asked.He was genuinely curious

“What?”

“Have you wanted to kiss Adrien or Chat Noir?” He clarified.

“Both,” she mumbled.

His eyes widened, “Both?” 

“Well, Adrien longer,” she admitted, “Chat kind of snuck up on me…”

He smirked, “Oh my God! You liked Chat Noir before you knew I was Adrien?!”

She nodded. “And I still do,” she said shyly, “Do you still like Ladybug now that you know I’m Marinette?”

“I think I like you even more,” he admitted, “Marinette kind of snuck up on me too.”

She looked at him, “Really?”

“Really.”

Then, they stared into each other’s eyes for what felt like forever.Both of them knew what they wanted to happen next, but neither of them knew how to make that happen. Chat Noir’s eyes flickered to his partners lips.

“Would it be okay if I—“

“Yes,” she said before he could finish his question and promptly crashed her lips against his.It was sloppy and overeager. She didn’t have enough time to aim perfectly, but it wasn’t long before they both got into the rhythm of in.They’re lips moving together, her hand in his hair, his around her waist… He could stay this was forever.

That was until a chorus of cheers broke them apart.

“I TOLD YOU, NINO,” a voice that sounded suspiciously like Alya’s screamed.

Right, they’re classmates were here…

“Well, this is embarrassing,” Ladybug said.

He shrugged, “Well, they didn’t find out our identities, so at least they could cat-ch that.” 

“Oh my God, Kitty,” she covered her face with her hands, “Shut up!”

“Make me,” he said with a wink.

She smirked. “I think I know just the way to do that.”

And the next thing they knew was that they were kissing again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end! I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> follow me on tumblr @plaggplz

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it!
> 
> Follow me on tumblr!  
> http://plaggplz.tumblr.com/


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